One of 22 South Korean Coast Guard Haeuri (type A) patrol vessel (Picture source: Korean Internet)

NavyRecognition reports that South Korea will be transferring two S. Korean Coast Guard vessels to the Ecuadorian Coast Guard.

The vessels are Haeuri patrol vessels, PC302 and PC303. According to my “Combat Fleets of the World,” they entered service in Dec 1990 and 1991 respectfully, so they are coming up on 29 and 30 years old. They are 55.5 meter or 182′ in length overall (53.7 between perpendiculars), have a 7.4 meter or 24.3′ beam, and a draft of 2.48 meters or just over 8′. Displacement is 300 tons light and 460 tons full load. They have a pair of MTU 16V396 diesels for a total of 4,392 HP and a speed of 19 knots, and a range of 2,100 nmi at 15 knots. Crew is four officers and 35 enlisted. Armament is a 20mm Vulcan Gatling gun and four .50 cal. (From what I have found, these ships may look a bit different from the photo above, which was included with the story. A photo of PC301 from Combat Fleets shows a vessel with a lattice mast, stack, and no boat or crane on the stern.)

The Ecuador’s Coast Guard currently has a pair of 50 meter Damen patrol vessels and four Damen Stan 2600 vessels similar to the 87 foot Marine Protector Class.

Since Ecuador’s EEZ is in the Eastern Pacific Drug transit zone, there is a good chance the US Coast Guard may interact with these vessels.